Surprises
by CSIBuckeye
Summary: Sequel to Faulty Assumptions and Absence


Title: Surprises

Author: CSIBuckeye

Rating: T

Pairing: GSR

Notes: Sequel to "Faulty Assumptions"

Disclaimer: They don't belong to me, though they are on my Christmas list. In the mean time, no infringement intended.

Spoilers: Through Season 7

_To: __Gil.Grissomlvpdcsi.gov_

_From: __Conrad.Ecklielvpdcsi.gov_

_Subject: Staffing Reassignments_

_Per our meeting and subsequent discussions with Sheriff McKeen, the following changes will be effective March 1, 2007:_

_Catherine Willows will be promoted to Night Shift Supervisor_

_Gil Grissom will be demoted to Senior CSI Level III, per request_

_Please discuss these changes with your team prior to that time._

_C. Ecklie_

_Lab Director_

_CSI Division_

_LVPD_

Grissom re-read the e-mail and smirked to himself in surprise. 'The bastard had almost managed to sound cordial,' he thought. 'The sheriff must have been pretty explicit about what he wanted done and how.'

"What's that smirk about?" The leggy brunette in the door asked with a smirk of her own.

"Got the e-mail from Ecklie. The changes are effective March, 1, so you'd better get cracking on this plan of yours if we're going to pull it off by then," he said.

"I'm headed to talk to Brass now," she replied as she turned to go. She stopped and threw him a sexy smile over her shoulder, "See you later."

He grinned at her, and after her, as she walked away. He was amazed at all the turns his life had taken. Sara Sidle was going to marry him…be his wife. He was still half shocked she had said yes. Truth be told, he had expected to have to do a lot more rationalizing to get her to agree. He sighed, 'She never ceases to surprise me.'

Sara knocked lightly on Brass' office door before walking on in. "Got a sec?" She asked as she plopped her lanky frame in the chair by the desk.

"Only one, and only for you," he said with a grin as he closed the file in his hand. "What's up?"

"Well," she smiled shyly, "I have some news, and a favor to ask."

He cocked an eyebrow and simply said, "Oh?"

He listened attentively as she laid out her plan and then made her request. He was surprised and touched when she asked him to stand up with her at the ceremony, but he hadn't really expected them to have a traditional wedding. "I'd be more than honored, Sara," he whispered as they stood and embraced. "I'm so happy for you guys, and…I can't wait for this wedding!"

Nick did a complete double take as he hurried through the P.D. He had glanced into Brass' office out of habit, but had screeched to a halt and practically given himself whiplash as his brain registered what he saw. Sara and Brass were embracing and he heard Brass say something about not being able to wait for the wedding! 'Holy crap! Catherine was right! But not only were they dating, they were getting married! Wait til Cath hears this!' he thought as he continued down the hall and pulled out his phone.

When Grissom walked into the break room later, all conversation awkwardly ceased. He eased over to the coffee maker and poured himself a cup of sludge as he questioned, "Did I interrupt something?" He turned to Catherine, Nick, and Warrick and there was no mistaking the look on each face. They looked at him, and away from him, with sincere pity etched on their visages.

"Alright, what's going on?" He demanded.

No one met his eyes.

"Catherine! Spill it!"

"Can we talk in your office?" She asked in a soft voice.

"Why? Everyone here already seems to know what's going on except me. Now what _is_ going on?"

"Nick overheard Brass and Sara earlier. They were talking about their wedding," she said apologetically.

Not for the first time in his life Grissom was supremely thankful for his ability to maintain a neutral façade as his emotions swirled. Still, it was difficult to suppress the grin that wanted to erupt on his face. 'This is turning into a comedy of errors,' he thought. He looked from one to the other as he said quietly, "Are you sure?"

"I know what I saw and what I heard, Gris," Nick replied.

"But…what was the context? Maybe they were talking about someone else's wedding?" He suggested.

"Uh…I don't think so. They were…hugging…when I walked by," he shrugged.

"Oh," he said as he turned and quickly exited the room on the way back to his office.

"Aww man," Nick moaned. "This sucks! I mean Sara and Brass are my friends and I'm glad they're happy, but…I feel so sorry for Grissom"

Warrick clapped him on the back, "So do we, but it's not like Gris didn't have his chances, Nick. Sara's feelings for him were never a secret, and she pined away for him for a _long_ time. I'm glad she got on with her life."

"We'll just have to be there for Grissom and get him through this. But you're right Nick…this does suck," Catherine said as her pager went off.

_Can I see you in my office, please?_

_G_

"Gotta go guys. Talk to you later," she offered as she hurried out.

"Sit down, Catherine," he said as she walked in. He handed her a copy of Ecklie's e-mail and watched her face as she read it.

"Is this for real?" She asked disbelievingly.

"Yes, its official, and I'd like to inform the team and everyone in a private setting. I'm going to invite everyone to my house for dinner to explain everything and answer the inevitable questions, so I'd appreciate it if this could stay between us until then, okay?"

"Sure, Gil. Thank you," she said softly.

"You don't have to thank me Catherine. You deserve this, you earned it, and I know you'll do a great job," he said with a smile.

"I hope so, but I do owe you thanks. You took an ex-stripper under your wing right out of UNLV night school. You never judged me on my past, or my husband, or my father. You believed in me, when I didn't believe in myself sometimes. Thank you for your friendship."

He blushed, "I don't know that I've been a very good friend at times. And I owe you at least as much thanks for trying to keep me in touch with humanity. Without you pulling me out, I might have retreated completely into my own world. Thanks Catherine, and since you're such a good friend…how about giving me your caterer's number for my dinner party?"

"I'll hook you up," she promised with a laugh.

He found Sara sitting in front of the computer when he got home later. He walked up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders as he placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"Hey," she said, "How was your day?"

"Weird. Yours?"

"Productive," she responded. And with a raised eyebrow she asked, "Why was yours weird?"

"Well, it's not every day that you find out your fiancée is marrying another man," he teased.

"What?" She cried in surprise.

"Well, Nicky just so happened to be walking by Brass' office when you were on your little errand and he…misinterpreted the evidence," he said with a grin.

"Oh boy," she muttered.

"So, did it go well with Brass then?" He asked massaging her shoulders.

"He was very sweet. I think he was truly touched that I asked him. How did it go with Catherine?"

"Good. She's going to give me her caterer's number," he answered.

"Great. That will be a big help," she said as he turned the office chair so she faced him.

"I want to show you something," he whispered as he knelt on the floor in front of her and pulled out an old maroon ring box with the velvet almost worn off the top. "This was my grandmother's wedding ring," he said as he opened the lid.

Inside laid a one carat emerald cut diamond inlaid in a silver band of the most ornate filigree work Sara had ever seen.

"It's beautiful, Gil," she whispered.

"My grandfather was a jeweler. He designed and crafted the entire ring himself. But, Sara if you'd rather have something else, I totally understand. It's old and maybe not really in style anymore," he said.

"It's perfect," she whispered. "I couldn't have dreamed anything more lovely if I'd tried. It's exactly what I'd pick out for myself. The fact that your grandfather made it for the woman he loved…makes it so much more special."

"I love you, Sara. Will you marry me?" He asked again as he slipped the ring on her fourth finger.

"Yes I will, and I love you so much," she smiled as she held her hand up and gazed at her engagement ring. "Wow, this is real isn't it? We're really going to get married," she said in disbelief.

"You're not having second thoughts are you?" He asked with more than a hint of concern in his voice.

She leaned down to place a gentle kiss on his upturned cheek, "No, Gil. I've never been surer of a decision in my entire life. I had second thoughts when I decided to move cross country to go to Harvard, I had second thoughts when I dropped out of Grad school to pursue forensics, and I had second thoughts about an affair with a visiting entomologist. Then I had second thoughts when that same entomologist called and asked me to drop everything to fly to Vegas to help him, and I had second thoughts _each_ time he asked me to stay. But I'll never have second thoughts about becoming his wife."

She stood and pulled him up to join her, their hands intertwined at their sides as they gazed into each others' eyes. "I love you Dr. Grissom," she whispered.

"And I love you soon to be Mrs.…." He paused and pulled back slightly as he asked, "What are you going to do about your name?"

"Actually I've given this quite a bit of thought," she smiled. "It would make sense to just keep Sidle professionally or maybe hyphenate to Sidle-Grissom…"

"You know I'm okay with whatever you decide, right? It's your name, and it's not about becoming property or giving up your identity," he replied quickly.

"You didn't let me finish," she teased. "_But,_ I'd like to take your name if it's okay with you."

He flashed her a lopsided grin, "Of course it's okay. It's more than okay, but I am surprised. Can I ask why?"

"Certainly. When I reflect on my life thus far, there is so much negativity and pain associated with being Sara Sidle, especially before I met you. Almost everything good and positive in my life is some how connected to you. Our marriage will mark a new beginning for us and I'd like to start it without the baggage that Sara Sidle has carried her entire life. Sara Grissom has a clean slate."

He kissed her tenderly, "Then I love you soon to be Mrs. Grissom." It made him strangely proud that she had chosen to take his name, and the reasoning behind her choice filled him with love. It was still hard for him to believe that he, of all people, had helped Sara begin to lay her demons to rest.

She watched the emotions reflected in his cloudy azure eyes. If they truly were the windows to the soul, then she had no doubt about the depth of love inside Gil Grissom.

At work the next evening, select people were surprised to find formal invitations waiting in their mailboxes.

_Gil Grissom requests the honor_

_Of your presence at a dinner party_

_At his home._

_February 20th, 2007 at 4:30pm_

_Fancy dress is requested_

_Please RSVP, and please keep_

_This invitation to yourself_.

The following few weeks were filled with planning and work, but surprisingly there was no gossip about Grissom's party. Apparently people had taken his request to heart and didn't discuss their invitations with each other.

Sara, Brass and Grissom awaited the arrival of their unsuspecting guests. The living room had been transformed into a beautiful formal dining room. One long table covered by heavy white linen tablecloths and china place settings, spanned the space. There were small glass vases filled with nosegays of American Beauty roses all along the length of the table. Not surprisingly, Catherine was the first to arrive.

"It looks beautiful, Gil," she said as she took in the environment. "And I see you've been making other changes as well."

"You have no idea," he chuckled, making eye contact with Sara. She suppressed her grin as he escorted Catherine to her assigned seat at his right side. Grissom sat at the head of the table, Sara on his left, Brass on her left. Within twenty minutes, the rest of the invitees had arrived and were seated. The wine was poured and Grissom arose from his seat to survey the people surrounding the table: Nick, Warrick, Greg, David, Al, Catherine, Brass, and of course, Sara. These were his friends…his family…and he was so much richer for their presence in his life. He realized that now.

He cleared his throat, "Can I have your attention for a minute please? I know you're all curious about what's going on, so I'm going to put you out of your misery to a certain degree. I wanted you all to hear this from me first so I could answer any questions you have." He noticed the perplexed looks being exchanged, but he pressed on, "Effective March 1, I will be stepping down as night shift supervisor."

A chorus of murmurs erupted, but he quieted them with a wave of his hand. "Catherine is going to be taking over and I'm staying on as lead CSI at night. This is something I've been thinking about for a long time, and there wasn't one single thing that instigated this action," he said glancing at the redhead. "I never wanted to be a supervisor in the first place, and I've never been interested in the politics. It's always been about the science for me, and now I'll be able to restore my focus. Also I'd like to start doing more teaching again and this change will free me up a lot more easily. As I've gotten older, I've learned that the things that I always thought were the most important sometimes aren't. I've learned that the most important things in life aren't things at all…they're people. We've been through a lot together," he said making eye contact with each one of them in turn, "and I consider myself lucky to know each and every one of you. So thank you for being the best team, and the best friends, I ever could have asked for." He raised his glass, "To you," as they all toasted together.

The dinner was filled with questions, comments and reminiscing. Everyone shared a Grissom story or a favorite Grissom quote and laughter abounded. As dinner was cleared, the doorbell rang and a hush fell over the party as Under Sheriff McKeen walked in the door. He and Grissom exchanged a few words and then Brass walked over to join them. They spoke for a couple minutes as curious looks were shared at the table. Then Brass returned to stand behind Sara's chair with his hands on her shoulders.

"I wanted to let you all know that there's another reason you were all invited here besides Gil's announcement. I know there have been some rumors floating around about Sara and me," he said with pointed looks for Nick and Catherine. "Well, you've all been asked here to be wedding guests," he said as Nick, Catherine, and Warrick shared knowing looks. "But perhaps not the wedding you were expecting," he grinned.

Sara arose from her chair and Brass took her hand. He led her over to Grissom, and in front of their very surprised friends, he placed Sara's hand in Gil's.

"Take care of her, my friend," he said.

"I will, Jim. I promise," Grissom replied.

They turned to find six stunned faces staring at them. Catherine was the first to speak, sort of.

"But…but…I…"

"Yes Catherine?" Gil teased.

"But I saw…" And she thought back to the scene at the airport.

"Yeah…and I saw…" Nick sputtered as he remembered the moment he had interrupted in Brass' office.

"What you both really saw was two friends being there for each other. David, when I found out you were engaged, did I not hug you?" Sara asked.

David shyly nodded in the affirmative.

"And Warrick, when I first found out you'd gotten married?"

He also nodded, embarrassed at his assumptions. There was a minute of processing time as no one spoke, and then Greg piped up.

"Okay, I buy that there's nothing going on with you and Brass, but since when is there something going on with you and Grissom? You guys are getting married and we didn't even know you were dating? How is that possible?"

"Well Greg," Grissom answered, "Perhaps you all aren't quite the investigative geniuses you think you are. In fact, Sara and I have been dating for a year and a half, and living together for the last year."

"WHAT?!?" The voices echoed momentarily in unison before descending into a cacophony of confused questioning. The six people at the table all looked at each other and started bouncing thoughts off one another. Everyone volunteering little things that they'd noticed, or not noticed, that all seemed to make perfect sense now. Sara and Grissom looked at each other with satisfied smiles before Grissom leaned in for a kiss. He placed his large hands on either side of her delicate face, his thumbs stroking her jaw line. She brought her hands up to his shoulders as their lips met in a comfortably familiar dance. They didn't notice the silence that had descended on the room until it was shattered by the applause. They pulled apart, laughing and Grissom said, "Let's get this show on the road!"

"Okay, but I have one serious question," Al said.

"Go ahead," Sara replied.

"What about Ecklie? He's not just going to sit still for this. He's going to make your lives miserable."

Sheriff McKeen put his hand up and said, "I can answer that one. Ecklie's okay with what I tell him he's okay with. And trust me; He'll be fine with these two. If he's not, you all just let me know."

"Just one more thing and we're ready to get started. Catherine, I'd be honored if you'd stand with me please," Grissom requested. "Since Jim is Sara's Maid of Honor, I'd like you to be my Best Man," he grinned.

"Nothing's ever easy with you two, is it?" She laughed as she joined them near the fireplace.

The Sheriff pulled a small book from his jacket pocket and said, "This is, without a doubt, the most enjoyable part of my job. I'm honored to join you all today to celebrate the love between Gil and Sara. They have written their own vows to exchange before you, their family. Sara?"

Grissom and Sara faced each other, hands joined as Sara began, "I haven't been sure of many things in my life. My childhood was a jumble of violence and uncertainty that made it difficult for me to trust others, or myself. But the day I met you…I was absolutely certain that you were the man I was going to marry. Now I grant you, I questioned that certainty, and my sanity, over the following years, but something in my heart just kept telling me to give you a little more time. I once told you that by the time you figured it out, it could be too late, but in reality…it never would have been. I would have waited forever, because I _knew_ we were meant to be together. Gil, I promise that I will always be there when you need me, even when you don't think you do. I promise to nurse you through your migraines and your bouts of misanthropy. I promise to let you have ample time with your insect friends, but to not let you neglect your human ones. I promise to give you space, and time alone when you need it, but I also promise to try to keep you from becoming a hermit. And most of all, I promise you my unwavering and undying love, for the rest of our lives."

As she spoke, her eyes never left his, and as she finished, a single tear slid silently down each of their cheeks. In unison, they reached up to wipe the others' tear away.

"Gil?" Encouraged the Sheriff.

"Well I know you'd all be disappointed if there wasn't a quote in here somewhere, so here you go. Thoreau said 'Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.' And Sara, I have imagined a life with you almost since the moment our eyes met at that seminar. Even though it took me almost ten years to actually act on my desires, never doubt that I imagined it from the very beginning. And even when I gathered all my courage to ask you to come to Vegas, I didn't have quite enough to invite you into my life. So I'd pull you in and then I'd push you away. And I know I hurt you Sara, but I promise to spend the rest of my life making it up to you. I promise to hold you during your nightmares and to kiss away your tears. I promise to provide enough of a diversion that you won't need, or want, to max out on overtime each month. I promise to do my best to talk about my feelings and my fears, and to not keep things bottled up inside. I promise to do everything in my power to make sure you know how much I love you…every single day, for the rest of my life. Sara, I promise that with you by side, we _will_ live the lives we've imagined."

She raised her hand to his cheek, and he covered it with his own, turning his head to kiss her palm. Their hands remained joined as they turned to the Sheriff.

"The rings?" He said to Jim. And as they exchanged simple silver bands, they heard several sniffles from their guests.

"By the power vested in me by the Courts of Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada, I'm honored to pronounce you …husband and wife. You may kiss your bride," smiled McKeen.

Grissom gave her a lascivious smile coupled with a wink as he pulled her to him, dipped her, and then kissed her passionately.

The guests erupted into wild applause, whistles, hoots and hollers.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Dr. and Mrs. Grissom," announced the Sheriff.

"WHAT?!" Nick demanded. "YOU are taking HIS name? YOU? The woman who said weddings still represent women as exchange of property?"

"Shut up Nick!" Sara laughed. "I told you I wasn't anti-wedding, just anti-stupid. Besides…love can make you do surprising things"

"You can say that again," Grissom chuckled as he kissed her ringed hand.


End file.
